The Summer Palace was once a sprawling complex of pavilions scattered over thousands of wooded acres in the hills northwest of the capital.... The first of these summer palaces was built in the twelfth century: other ornate pavilions, gardens, and fishponds were added during the Yuan and Ming dynasties, hidden in groves among the hills, connected by meandering footpaths. The entire area is surrounded by walls.
There's a lot of history behind the Summer Palace, and these few pictures do not do it justice. I'll add more later.
We arrived early in the morning. The tourist groups in busses weren't there yet, but the crowd was growing.
That's my sister Nancy with the white hair. Nancy is walking away from the camera. Her daughter Jenny is looking toward the camera.
My original intent was to take pictures that might make a good cover for the sequel to my historical novel, My Splendid Concubine. I didn't conceive of turning the 2008, China trip into a photo article until later, halfway through the trip.
The Summer Palace was destroyed, and what didn't burn was blown up by the Anglo French military force that invaded China during the 19th century forcing China to open more ports to opium merchants and others. Along with opium, the treaties required China to allow Christian missionaries into China too. I'm going to quote something from C. M. Cipolla's book, Guns, Sails and Empires. "While Buddha came to China on white elephants, Christ was born on cannon balls."
A section of the Grand Canal went from the Forbidden City to the Summer Palace so the emperor could take a boat if he didn't feel like walking or riding a horse.
The last empress of China rebuilt this portion of the Summer Palace after the Western military destroyed it. One reason for the destruction was to cover up the looting from the Western military. At one point there was even an organized auction for soliders that missed out on the thefts. The Summer Palace was where much of the Imperial treasure was kept that had been collected for more than a thousand years. Imagine the wealth. The current government is rebuilding more of the buildings that were destroyed.
My wife wrote about the last empress, Tzu Hsi, in her two novels: Empress Orchid (a finalist for the British Book Awards), and The Last Empress. Tzu Hsi was born the same year as Robert Hart, the main character in My Splendid Concubine. Tzu Hsi died two weeks after Hart left China for the last time in 1908.
In the picture above and to the left there is a pagoda on top of a hill in the distance (left, top corner). That pagoda is inside the Summer Palace giving an idea the size of the place. Before the destruction, the entire Summer Palace, better known as the Yuanmingyuan, was being considered as the ninth wonder of the world alongside Egypt's Pyramids and the Great Wall of China.
Did you notice the paddle boats for tourists to rent and use on the lake? These plastic boats look out of place among the imperial splendor.
China's week long national holiday starts in October. Tens of millions of Chinese will be visiting the same places. So far, we've been lucky and the sites we've seen haven't been crowded.
That will soon change. I don't recommend visiting China during any of the national holidays. On the other hand, if you like crowds and being carried along by a human river, you may enjoy the experience.
On the other side of the hill, behind the temple, is a water town built for the Emperor's pleasure.
The last picture below was taken after we climbed to the top of the temple and returned to the entry gate. It was a long climb. Notice the brass cups on the door behind my wife and I. There are nine to each row and nine to each column--numbering eighty-one for each door/gate panel. The Chinese believed the number nine brings luck.